Disruption of social circadian rhythms in major depression: A preliminary report

• Published in: Psychiatry research Vol. 42; no. 3; pp. 221 - 230
• Main Authors: Szuba, Martin P., Yager, Alison, Guze, Barry H., Allen, Eva M., Baxter, Lewis R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Shannon Elsevier Ireland Ltd 01.06.1992; Elsevier
• Subjects: Activities of Daily Living - psychology; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Affective disorder; Biological and medical sciences; Circadian Rhythm; Depressive Disorder - diagnosis; Depressive Disorder - psychology; diurnal mood; Female; Hospitalization; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Mood disorders; Personality Assessment; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Social Behavior; Social Environment; Social Rhythm Metric; zeitgebers; Affective disorder; diurnal mood; zeitgebers; Social Rhythm Metric; Human; Mood disorder; Social behavior; Social Rhythm Metrics Ehlers et al; Evaluation scale; Pathogenesis; Daily living; Depression; Biological rhythm; Circadian rhythm
• ISSN: 0165-1781; 1872-7123
• DOI: 10.1016/0165-1781(92)90114-I

While dysregulations of physiological circadian rhythms are common findings in depression and have been posited to be involved in the mediation of depressive episodes, only recently has the role of social circadian rhythms in the pathogenesis of depression been a focus of interest. The Social Rhythm Metric (SRM), designed to describe the regularity of a human subject's social circadian rhythms, was used in this study to compare the social rhythms of depressed patients with those of normal controls and to determine the relationship between SRM scores and depression severity. Depressed patients' SRM scores were significantly lower than those of normal controls. The SRM negatively correlated with scores on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression. Overall social activity was negatively correlated with a Hamilton item, social activity impairment. The results of this preliminary study support the hypothesis that social zeitgebers are disrupted in major depression.